Louis Jordan lost at sea
Louis Jordan lost at sea, A man who was lost at sea for 66 days, surviving on just fish and rainwater, has left hospital and is in surprisingly good health.
Louis Jordan, 37, who was stranded 200 miles off the coast of North Carolina, suffered no sun damage, was not dehydrated and refused treatment when he was checked over in hospital, despite more than two months exposed to the elements.
The Coast Guard crew who rescued him said he had a small smile on his face when they landed on his vessel, expecting him to be covered in blisters and have severe sunburn.
A four-man helicopter team hoisted Jordan off the German vessel on Thursday.
In interviews Friday at Coast Guard headquarters in Portsmouth, they said they did not see Jordan's boat and did not know any details about his time at sea.
By the time they picked him up — about 5 p.m. Thursday — Jordan had been on the German vessel for a few hours and had been able to take a shower and speak to his family, the guardsmen said.
'He walked over to me as soon as I landed on deck and had a small smile on his face,' said Petty Officer 3rd Class Kyle McCollum, who had the first contact with Jordan. 'My initial impression of him was he was in pretty good health. ... We were expecting worse with blisters and severe sunburn and dehydration.'
'He was in a fairly good condition for a guy that you would normally expect to see after 60-plus days offshore,' added Lt. Jack Shadwick, the helicopter's co-pilot
The crew of a German-flagged container ship found Jordan on his single-masted 35-foot boat Thursday afternoon, Coast Guard officials said.
Neither he nor the Coast Guard said exactly when Jordan's vessel capsized. Jordan managed to catch and eat fish, according to the Coast Guard, and despite reports of a shoulder injury and dehydration, he arrived at a hospital in good condition and refused treatment, a facility spokesman said.
Jordan said he initially didn't believe the container ship was real when he saw it. He said the ship's crew didn't see him until he began waving his arms.
Asked about his good condition, Jordan claims he tried to stay inside the boat and conserved as much energy as possible.
During an interview with WAVY-TV, he said: 'Every day I was like, 'Please God, send me some rain, send me some water.'
'I waved my hands real slowly, and that's the signal 'I'm in distress. Help me,'' he told WAVY. 'I blew my whistles. I had three whistles. They never heard them. I turned my American flag upside down and put that up. That says, "Rescue me.''
Jordan had been living on his 1950s-era boat at a marina in Conway, South Carolina, near Myrtle Beach, until January, when he told his family he was going into open water to sail and fish, said his mother, Norma Davis. He set out January 23, Coast Guard officials said, and hadn't been heard from since.
Jordan told WAVY that he was traveling north when his boat hit bad weather. He said he saw a wave crash into his window, and the boat eventually filled with water.
He said he rationed his water to about a pint a day, but 'for such a long a time I was so thirsty.'
Jordan said that at one point he was flying through the air, and he thinks he broke his shoulder.
McCollum, of the helicopter crew, said Jordan had slight bruising on his right clavicle, but it didn't appear serious: 'He was moving that arm so fluidly, without any skip and there wasn't any sign of pain in his face as he was moving.'
On Jan. 29, the Coast Guard in Miami was notified by his father, Frank Jordan, that he hadn't seen or heard from his son in a week, agency spokeswoman Marilyn Fajardo said.
Alerts were issued from New Jersey to Miami, according to the Coast Guard. Officials searched financial data to determine whether Jordan had come ashore without being noticed, but they found no such indication, Fajardo said.
A search began Feb. 8 and lasted 10 days, the Coast Guard said. Some sailors reporting seeing Jordan's boat, but no sightings were confirmed.
The Coast Guard said Jordan didn't file a 'float plan,' the nautical equivalent of a flight plan, with his route or destination.
Jeff Weeks manages the Bucksport Plantation Marina, where Jordan docked his boat.
'He is somewhat of a person who stays to himself,' Weeks said. 'I consider him a gentle giant with a good personality, but he likes to be self-sufficient.
'Here at the marina, he liked to catch most all of the food that he'd eat. He would eat a lot of rice and fish. And he would know what berries and what mushrooms to pick. He was really knowledgeable on some survival skills.'
Louis Jordan, 37, who was stranded 200 miles off the coast of North Carolina, suffered no sun damage, was not dehydrated and refused treatment when he was checked over in hospital, despite more than two months exposed to the elements.
The Coast Guard crew who rescued him said he had a small smile on his face when they landed on his vessel, expecting him to be covered in blisters and have severe sunburn.
A four-man helicopter team hoisted Jordan off the German vessel on Thursday.
In interviews Friday at Coast Guard headquarters in Portsmouth, they said they did not see Jordan's boat and did not know any details about his time at sea.
By the time they picked him up — about 5 p.m. Thursday — Jordan had been on the German vessel for a few hours and had been able to take a shower and speak to his family, the guardsmen said.
'He walked over to me as soon as I landed on deck and had a small smile on his face,' said Petty Officer 3rd Class Kyle McCollum, who had the first contact with Jordan. 'My initial impression of him was he was in pretty good health. ... We were expecting worse with blisters and severe sunburn and dehydration.'
'He was in a fairly good condition for a guy that you would normally expect to see after 60-plus days offshore,' added Lt. Jack Shadwick, the helicopter's co-pilot
The crew of a German-flagged container ship found Jordan on his single-masted 35-foot boat Thursday afternoon, Coast Guard officials said.
Neither he nor the Coast Guard said exactly when Jordan's vessel capsized. Jordan managed to catch and eat fish, according to the Coast Guard, and despite reports of a shoulder injury and dehydration, he arrived at a hospital in good condition and refused treatment, a facility spokesman said.
Jordan said he initially didn't believe the container ship was real when he saw it. He said the ship's crew didn't see him until he began waving his arms.
Asked about his good condition, Jordan claims he tried to stay inside the boat and conserved as much energy as possible.
During an interview with WAVY-TV, he said: 'Every day I was like, 'Please God, send me some rain, send me some water.'
'I waved my hands real slowly, and that's the signal 'I'm in distress. Help me,'' he told WAVY. 'I blew my whistles. I had three whistles. They never heard them. I turned my American flag upside down and put that up. That says, "Rescue me.''
Jordan had been living on his 1950s-era boat at a marina in Conway, South Carolina, near Myrtle Beach, until January, when he told his family he was going into open water to sail and fish, said his mother, Norma Davis. He set out January 23, Coast Guard officials said, and hadn't been heard from since.
Jordan told WAVY that he was traveling north when his boat hit bad weather. He said he saw a wave crash into his window, and the boat eventually filled with water.
He said he rationed his water to about a pint a day, but 'for such a long a time I was so thirsty.'
Jordan said that at one point he was flying through the air, and he thinks he broke his shoulder.
McCollum, of the helicopter crew, said Jordan had slight bruising on his right clavicle, but it didn't appear serious: 'He was moving that arm so fluidly, without any skip and there wasn't any sign of pain in his face as he was moving.'
On Jan. 29, the Coast Guard in Miami was notified by his father, Frank Jordan, that he hadn't seen or heard from his son in a week, agency spokeswoman Marilyn Fajardo said.
Alerts were issued from New Jersey to Miami, according to the Coast Guard. Officials searched financial data to determine whether Jordan had come ashore without being noticed, but they found no such indication, Fajardo said.
A search began Feb. 8 and lasted 10 days, the Coast Guard said. Some sailors reporting seeing Jordan's boat, but no sightings were confirmed.
The Coast Guard said Jordan didn't file a 'float plan,' the nautical equivalent of a flight plan, with his route or destination.
Jeff Weeks manages the Bucksport Plantation Marina, where Jordan docked his boat.
'He is somewhat of a person who stays to himself,' Weeks said. 'I consider him a gentle giant with a good personality, but he likes to be self-sufficient.
'Here at the marina, he liked to catch most all of the food that he'd eat. He would eat a lot of rice and fish. And he would know what berries and what mushrooms to pick. He was really knowledgeable on some survival skills.'